Go-To Cheesecake

Crust:

About 15 graham crackers

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

1.     Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a food processor, grind graham crackers to crumbs. Add sugar and salt and pulse to combine. With motor running, add butter through feed tube. Process until combined.

2.     Transfer the mixture to a spring foam pan OR a 8x8 Casserole dish, which is what I had on hand when I made this. Spread the mixture on the bottom and up the sides.

3.     Bake crust until slightly brown. You’ll just be able to smell it. This will take anywhere from 10-12 minutes. Remove crust from the oven and allow to cool on a rack. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

Cheesecake Filling

3 8oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature (use Philadelphia, it works alot better than store brand)

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

1 ¼ cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1.     In a stand mixture fitted with the paddle attachment beat cream cheese until smooth/

2.     Add flour and salt, beat to combine, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Beat until smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. There should be no lumps.

3.     Add the sugar and beat to combine.

4.     Add the vanilla, and then beat in the eggs one at a time until just combined, about 30 seconds each. Do not overbeat once the eggs are added; the cheesecake will puff up too much while baking, and the top will crack.

5.     Pour the cream cheese mixture into the cooled crust and smooth the top.

6.     Bake at 300 degrees F for 55 – 65 minutes. The center will seem to be only slightly set, and will be wobbly if you nudge it. The sides will puff slightly.

7.     Cool completely on a rack (took mine about 5 hours to cool,) then cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. DO NOT skip the cooling step, it is essential to making a perfect cheesecake.

 

With this recipe, as I stated in my other post, can be used for nearly ANY cheesecake you want to make.

Here are a few suggestions :

Salted Caramel Cheesecake
add 1 1/4 tsp of sea salt to the crust
add 1 can of Dulce de Leche and 3 tsp sea salt to the cheesecake filling
Top with Caramel Sauce (Hershey's works fine), Sprinkle with sea salt

Candy Bar Cheesecake
Add 1.5 cup of your favorite chopped up candy bar to the filling. 
(IE: Snickers, Milky Way, Baby Ruth, Reese's.)
Top with the same candy

Fruit Preserves/Jam
After you fill your pan, add 1 tsp of fruit preserves about half an inch apart throughout the whole cheesecake. Then take a knife and swirl it. Preserves come in a wide variety of flavors, so the possibilities are endless. (Raspberry, Cherry, Strawberry, Mango, Pineapple, Blackberry, Peach)

This is what it should look like before you swirl it





Fruit Topped
You can leave the base alone, and add your favorite fruit on top before you slice & serve. (Strawberry, Kiwi, Blackberries, Raspberries)

As you can see, the possibilities are endless! Be creative and try the things that you love most!

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cheesecake

I was on the search for a Go-To cheesecake recipe, and this is it! You can change it and construct it anyway you need to, to make an awesome delicious dessert that the whole family is sure to love.

Crust:

About 15 graham crackers

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

1.     Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a food processor, grind graham crackers to crumbs. Add sugar and salt and pulse to combine. With motor running, add butter through feed tube. Process until combined.

2.     Transfer the mixture to a spring foam pan OR a 8x8 Casserole dish, which is what I had on hand when I made this. Spread the mixture on the bottom and up the sides.

3.     Bake crust until slightly brown. You’ll just be able to smell it. This will take anywhere from 10-12 minutes. Remove crust from the oven and allow to cool on a rack. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F.

Cheesecake Filling

2 8oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature (use Philadelphia, it works alot better than store brand)

1 8oz package Philadelphia White Chocolate Indulgence

1/2 cup of melted white chocolate chips

1 cup Macadamia Nuts

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

1 ¼ cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1.     In a stand mixture fitted with the paddle attachment beat cream cheese until smooth, add the white chocolate and mix for about 1 minute.

2.     Add flour and salt, beat to combine, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Beat until smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. There should be no lumps.

3.     Add the sugar and beat to combine.

4.     Add the vanilla, and then beat in the eggs one at a time until just combined, about 30 seconds each. Do not overbeat once the eggs are added; the cheesecake will puff up too much while baking, and the top will crack. Fold in the macadamia nuts (do not use mixer)

5.     Pour the cream cheese mixture into the cooled crust and smooth the top.

6.     Bake at 300 degrees F for 55 – 65 minutes. The center will seem to be only slightly set, and will be wobbly if you nudge it. The sides will puff slightly.

7.     Cool completely on a rack (took mine about 5 hours to cool,) then cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. DO NOT skip the cooling step, it is essential to making a perfect cheesecake.

You can eat this plain or you can add whipped cream and caramel sauce. It tastes amazing either way. Enjoy!

If you want to make a "simple cheesecake"... Here is the ingredient list:

3 8oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature

2 tablespoons all purpose flour

1 ¼ cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

You can add chocolate chips, raspberries, strawberries,... Anything you need to make it an amazing cheesecake

Homemade Crock Pot Meatballs

Homemade meatballs have got to be a million times better than store bought ones. Here is what you will need.


 l lb Hamburger meat
2 tbsp Ketchup
1/4 c italian breadcrumbs
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)

Your favorite pasta sauce (I used Food Lion brand because there are no chunks of tomatoes in it)


First start by putting your sauce into your crockpot and turn it on low.


Combine all ingredients. Then form into about 1 inch balls. Place the meatballs into the sauce. (I made 22)

Cover, and cook for about 6-8 hours. I cooked mine for 6 hours on low, and they turned out amazing. If you like your meatballs to "fall apart" then I would cook between 8-12 hours, stirring about every 2 hours.

Serve alone or over your favorite pasta!

Bacon Wrapped, Cheese Stuffed, Hotdogs!

3 of my favorite foods, wrapped into one? Yes please! :-)

First slice your hotdogs length wise, but not all the way thru. 

 I used medium cheddar here, and cut pieces off a block of cheese I had in the fridge already. Place these pieces inside the hotdogs.

 Take a piece of bacon and a toothpick, place the toothpick thru the bacon, into the hotdog. Then wrap the bacon all the way down, securing with another toothpick

 Place them on a pre heated grill, and cook for about 3 minutes on each sides (turning to crisp all the bacon)

These are the finished product. I made ours a little crispy, because that is how we like ours! Make sure you remove the toothpicks. You can eat these on buns, or not, totally up to you!

Amazing Baked Mac & Cheese!

There really aren't many words to describe this mac & cheese, but pure deliciousness in a pan. The quantity I use, usually feeds my whole family, (aunts, uncles, cousins), so you can definitely reduce this if you need to.


1.5 lbs elbow or small shell macaroni 
1/4 cup butter
1 lb Velveeta (regular)
1 lb Queso Blanco Velveeta 
1 lb Sharp Chedder Cheese
3 eggs
about 2-3 cups of milk (this can vary)
1 bag (2.5 cups) shredded cheddar cheese


First, make sure you cube all of you cheese. This can be a very tedious task, so I normally do this the night before I plan on making this dish.

 

Cook the macaroni on the stovetop. Drain and then add the butter to keep from sticking together. Now, this is where you need to layer you noodles & your cheese. 

Mix your eggs & 2 cups of milk together. Pour this over your noodles. Now, you should be able to see the milk about halfway up your pan, if you can't add more until you do. This helps keep the noodles from drying out.


Put this in the oven at 350 for about 30-45 minutes. At about 20 minutes, add the shredded cheese on top. It is finished when it starts to brown on top. 

(The picture posted here is when I doubled the recipe for Thanksgiving.)

Easy Peezy Cupcakes

So, did you ever remember at the last minute that you needed to bake something for an event? Not to mention that the normal boxed mixed are sometimes entirely toooo much for what you need it for? Well, here is a simple solution for you. 

1/2 box cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp water
1 tbsp of vegetable oil


Mix, and you have about a dozen big cupcakes. I normally make mini cupcakes, and this makes about 36-48 minis, which can still be entirely too many. So, here is another halfing recipe for you.


1/4 box cake mix
1 egg
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water
3 tsp of vegetable oil


Mix and you have about 6 big cupcakes, and about 12-18 mini cupcakes. 


I hope this helps meet your cupcake needs!!!

White Chocolate Cherry Almond Cookies

First let me start by saying that these cookies were a HUGE hit with my family. Needless to say, there were none left over!

White Chocolate Cherry Almond Cookies

1/2 cup maraschino cherries, drained and finely chopped

2 Tablespoons of liquid from cherries

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cold butter
12 ounces white chocolate baking squares, finely chopped
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 drops red food coloring 
2 teaspoons vegetable oil (if needed)
White nonpareils, sprinkles, and/or red edible glitter (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spread cherries on paper towels to drain well reserving 2 Tablespoons of cherry liquid for the batter later\.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar. Cut in the butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in drained and chopped cherries and 4 ounces (2/3 cup) of the chopped white chocolate. Stir in the 2 Tablespoons reserved cherry liquid, almond extract, and food coloring. Mixture will be very dry and look like crumbs. Don't worry. That's normal. Using your hands, knead mixture until it forms a smooth ball.

3. Shape dough into 3/4-inch balls. The cookies do not spread much so make sure your balls are well formed. Having slightly damp hands helps here. Place balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Using the bottom of a drinking glass dipped in sugar, flatten balls to 1-1/2-inch rounds.

4. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until centers are set. Do not overbake! Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool.

5. Microwave the white chocolate; melting in 30 second intervals stirring in 
 between. Dip half of each cookie into chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. If desired, roll dipped edge in sprinkles and/or edible glitter. (I didn't add any sprinkles to the cookies, but I did add a red chocolate drizzled over them, and they were amazing!) Place cookies on waxed paper until chocolate is set. Makes about 48 cookies.

Here is a picture of my dessert spread I had for my family.